Our research focuses on developing and applying quantitative methods to address questions in conservation biology and environmental risk assessment.

We are currently interested in methods and approaches for predicting the vulnerability of species to global climate change, human land-use, toxicity and other threats. For more information see Research.

If you are interested in joining the Akçakaya lab as a graduate student, please read Information for Prospective Students.

News

H. Resit Akçakaya was awarded the 2012 George Rabb Award for Conservation Innovation, which is given by IUCN Species Survival Commission to individuals in recognition of delivering transformational advances in conservation theory and practice.

Highlighted papers

A recent paper in Methods in Ecology and Evolution tested various methods for combining static variables (such as soil or land use) with future climate scenarios in developing species distribution models to project future changes in species' ranges under climate change. Watch a video of Jessica Stanton discussing this paper.

A paper recently published in Global Change Biology linked a geomorphological model (SLAMM), a habitat model (MaxEnt), and a metapopulation model (RAMAS) to assess the impact of sea-level rise on Snowy Plovers in Florida.

A recent paper in Science presents the threat status of all the world’s vertebrates, and attempts at assessing the effectiveness of conservation. It is the result of one of the largest collaborations in our field and probably the paper with the largest authorship in ecology (if not biology). It has 174 authors (H.R. Akçakaya is towards the end); there are also over 4,000 names in the acknowledgments.

A new analysis of the cost-effectiveness of conservation strategies compared reintroductions, wildlife overpasses and anti-poaching measures for conservation of the European bison in the Carpathians.

Population density of a gekko species in Madagascar, based on climate change projections.

Global patterns of threat for vertebrates